Eccles 13 Warrington 9

WARRINGTON’S North One West trip to Eccles on Saturday ended in defeat when Pat Roberts’ trio of penalties were pegged back by a late try.

The first 30 minutes saw Warrington on top and the deadlock was broken when a powerful driving maul stormed 30 yards into Eccles territory where they forced a penalty, converted by Roberts.

The home pack responded and started to dominate, but it was Warrington who struck next when a second Roberts penalty gave them a six-point lead at the break.

Roberts increased the lead five minutes into the second period, but a sin-binning resulted in Eccles introducing their second string stand-off and the balance of the game swung in the hosts’ favour.

Two quick penalties closed the lead to three points and, although Warrington defended heroically, they had no answer to a steam roller drive from the Eccles pack into the corner.

The try was converted and Warrington had to settle for a losing bonus point.

“This was not one of our best performances of the season,” said coach Darren Abram. “Our pack was well below par, we showed no real creativity in the backs and we struggled to handle the conditions.”